“Mazvita, which means “thank you” in the Shona language of Zimbabwe, is a song that bridges cultures,”
says Draze. “The song transports listeners from a typical hood in America to a typical village in Zimbabwe
and is a personal “thank you” to my mother, father, grandparents and the communities who raised me in
both Africa and America.
Draze credits his parents for his unique sound that he’s dubbed Ancestral Arts. In an era when every
instrument on a song is synthesized, Draze physically plays marimba on the track. Marimba, which is
the predecessor to the Xylophone, is a traditional Zimbabwean instrument taught to Draze by his
father, Dumisani Maraire Sr., the world-renowned Marimba player who taught Marimba at the
University of Washington.